TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[War Machine]

The bizarre chords at the beginning are a little disorienting at first, and I think the drums are a little too punchy at times, but I grew to like them more by the end. The pauses the drums do for the first 30 seconds or so sort of just add to the disorienting nature of it IMO. I'm not a huge fan of all the muddy distortions you have going on here, especially in the stretch from around 2:00 to 2:45. It's rather minimalistic throughout, as well as harmonically bare, and I don't think your vinyl scratch transitions really worked for me either. The part after the 3-minute mark is a bit better, though, I think. I like the dark mood you started introducing there as well as the instruments and variation in chord progression, though slight. The ending was disappointing, though. It kind of just stops abruptly...it's not very conclusive at all. It almost gives me the sense that this is an unfinished piece. It's smooth-flowing, though structurally confusing. It also doesn't help that hip-hop is one of my least favorite genres, but I can assure you that I've been very careful not to take off any points solely because of that when I give you a 6.5 out of 10. Some interesting samples and ideas you got here, but I think they could be better organized a more interesting progression and melodic/harmonic development. Keep at it, anyhow, Mophead367. ;)

6.5/10

[Spring Surge]

Haha, it's quirky and cute! I like it. The slow tempo gives the beginning a charming and almost comical feel. I can picture a videogame character strolling down the road, a beautiful morning in his animated world. :') I like the melodies and harmonies, and while the beat was rather simple, it helps move this piece along rather well. I appreciated the more energetic phrases, such as 1:55, if only for the variety. The chord progression may have been a little cliché and the melodies rather simple, but I think it has a really fun character to it, and would definitely be good for a videogame. I love the sense of direction this has going into 2:55, another high point of the piece. The ending was also rather fitting and cute. Great job! Perhaps you can up the tempo just a little bit, as 4 minutes was a little long to sit through a piece this slow and a little simple at times, but overall excellent work! Keep it up, LunacyEcho! ;D

8.5/10

LunacyEcho responds:

Hi, TheDoor!

=> video game character imagery =>

That sounds nice! I'm pretty bad at creating images like that from music myself. :P

=> simple beat =>

My drums beats aren't really complicated. Ironic, since I'm a drummer. I guess it's because when I write music, I focus so much on composing melodic instruments that I get used to the placeholder drums. I wonder if there's a way to change that?

=> energetic phrases =>

The song sort of goes through a relaxed-energetic-relaxed-energetic thing, doesn't it? I find that adding energetic or calm phrases helps the song move along better.

=> cliché chord progression and simple melodies =>

I was trying to make a really LunacyEcho-esque song. What else would you expect? :D

=> sense of direction =>

I guess it could be seen as a journey rather than a transition. :)

=> ending =>

I'm really glad you all liked it! It made me laugh, so I put it in.

=> up the tempo =>

Well, the majority of the song was supposed to be at a pretty relaxed pace, (94 bpm), and I feel a tempo change to one of the faster parts of the song really disrupts its flow, so I tried making the tempo a balance of relaxing enough to play the opening stuff at but exciting enough to play the ending stuff at. I probably could make it a bit faster. :P

Thanks a lot for the review and thanks so much for hosting the NGAUC!

[Primal Time]

I like the mysterious mood at the beginning. The beat is quirky and cool, and the instruments add to that effect. The saw-bass that pops in occasionally also adds to it considerably in my opinion. I think it could've progressed a little faster, although I appreciated that transition moment at 1:13 and the corresponding minimalistic drop. It sort of has this quiet energy and personality to it which I really liked. I'm not sure the vocals at 1:25 really worked for me, though. I feel like a simple bass slide or something would've done the job of transitioning into the drop there. It almost sounds like trap given the beat. I like how you really make the piece come full-circle at 2:23. The ending was a little lack-luster IMO. Maybe you could even make it loop. I think a lot of people don't really like this kind of music because they don't think it's good for neither dancing nor simply listening to, but I personally think this is good for both. This is a stand-out piece in this competition, whether that's good or bad. XD Very interesting work, my friend. You took a real risk with this one, but I hope it pays off because I like it. Keep it up, man! ;D

8.5/10

JoshuaHughes responds:

Thanks for the kind and constructive words, dude! I feel like I've learned a lot since making this and participating in the contest.

[Across the Ocean]

I like the dreamy synths and piano at the beginning. You really have a good sense of climax with this one, although I do think that the first minute or so is a little repetitive. After that, it's rather minimalistic. The part at 1:26 wasn't bad, but it also wasn't much new either. The pause at 1:57 also added an interesting element of secrecy. I like how you filtered that synth at 2:15 to make it seem even more ominous in a way. I like the mood here - it almost seems ominous and blissful at the same time. That said, the ending didn't really impress me. I think you need to wind it down a little first - it can't just stop halfway through the main melody like that. This is good, that's for sure, but I don't think it's great. You played it a little safe with the simple melodies and chord progression. That said, the harmonic content is pretty enjoyable and, within the context of dance, this is a laid-back and feel-good sort of piece. Nice job, DjSkyFall, and keep at it, man! ;)

7.5/10

[Recharge {Dj-Abbic}]

Ooo...very catchy and cool! I love the breaks right off the bat! It's extremely engaging, and it really makes me want to get up and dance. :D I love how you oscillate between energetic and chill, and that melody at :46 is cool. You really create a lot of space for contrast for yourself, and it's very smooth-flowing and well-structured. That melody at 1:47 also really got my attention. The melodic and harmonic content is just excellent, and it always has an excellent sense of direction about it! Nice job with the part at 2:11 as well. The breaks at 2:49 are awesome. You really went all-out with this one and took huge risks, and they all paid off! The mixing is fantastic, and I even really liked how you ended it with that sort of ominous melody. Submissions like this are easy to score: not only am I giving you a 9.5/10, I'm also instantly fav'ing and DL'ing this (the only time I've INSTANTLY done that for any track in this competition). Keep up the excellent work, Djabbic. I do believe that you, sir, have just landed yourself a spot in the final round of this competition! >:D

9.5/10

DjAbbic responds:

That comment about creating space for contrast is quite interesting, as my brother always complains that he enjoys the chill parts but can't enjoy the energetic parts :D.

It's good to hear you liked the melody, as that was the main part of the song which propelled me to finishing it within 10 hours. The ending is also something that I quite like, as it is something I've never tried before, but I guess it worked out in the end.

Glad to hear you liked it so much :D. I'll try my best to top this for the next round.

[Slow Me]

I like the powerful chords at the beginning and the warm mood. The saxophone was a nice touch. It really adds to the chill, yet also quirky mood. I think it may have progressed a little slowly, at least for the first couple of minutes or so, but the part at 1:19 really did something for me. I think it was nice how you found a way to contribute to that chord progression meaningfully. It is a little minimalistic for most of the track, though. There are a couple of transitions that may just need a sweep or crash or something to make this flow as smoothly as the chords, 2:10 for example. I think the lack of fill is somewhat made up for by the mood and interesting structure you have here, and I like the pulsing riser/effect that begins at around 2:34. The breakdown that occurred just after the 3-minute mark also added some structural relief, and I like how you have that re-intro before the variations at 3:55. That said, I don't think this piece needed to be 6 minutes long. It struggle to hold my attention for that long, as most of it consists of variations on one rather simple chord progression. I think you could've even just looped it off at 3:29 and it would've gotten the job done. It does have an interesting sense of direction about it, though, but perhaps I would've liked to see a little more melodic and harmonic development. An interesting piece, and great for just chilling to, but stand-alone I'd say it needs to be a little less...bare and repetitive. Good job with the mixing, instruments, effects, and structuring though! Keep at it, Birdinator99. ;D

7.5/10

Birdinator99 responds:

Chill! I love that word -- glad I'm falling in that category. It's really my jam, honestly. Everyone needs to relax, so why not put it to music?

I enjoy the minimalistic transition at 2:10. I'll have to disagree with you there. The rising effect at 2:34 is great for thickening up that section -- makes it more intense, you know?

The repetitive nature of the song is something I anticipated judges to take issue with. I wanted to challenge myself to think about layering sounds more to maintain listener interest, while using the same chords the whole time. I wouldn't want to make this a loop, but yeah I could have ended it halfway. I felt like I had to more to say, though. I wanted to bring back the alto sax, but to do so before 3:29 might've been too soon.

If I could do it again, I might add a melody, but I would keep the length overall. It doesn't feel "bare" to me, but this kind of stuff isn't exactly crowd-pleasing, so it might feel bare compared to other genres you like.

Glad you liked it for the most part. Thanks for judging AND hosting!

Take care!

[You Know Nothing]

I like the sense of climax, and the chord progression is very interesting. It's a bit hard to follow that synth melody at :17 rhythmically, but I like the mood and instruments. That hi-hat is nice and crisp. The ravens were quite interesting and cleverly integrated, I must admit. Now I know why I saw a picture of one when I was scrolling through the thread. XD I'll admit I wasn't expecting such a minimalistic drop given all the melodic content during the first minute or so. It's very repetitive overall and progresses a little slowly for my tastes. That said, I did enjoy the second drop a bit better, as the pulsing effect was rather interesting. I also enjoyed the thick texture of hi-hats at 3:46. It's catchy, if a little minimalistic (but I suppose you (and I) already acknowledged that). The melodies are catchy, but I would've liked to see you vary them a bit, at least before the final drop. Overall, though, it's a pretty solid piece. It ends a little suddenly and is pretty long-winded, but these are minor complaints. The mixing and mastering was very good. Keep it up, Voltus! ^^

8/10

Voltus responds:

Thank you! I will keep it up as best as I can! ;)

[Sundans - I Dream]

It's very climactic and catchy. The fade-in approach at the beginning is a little cliché, but I think that's a minor complaint. The sense of direction in this one is good, and you channel the energy throughout rather well. It's very dreamy at times, and energetic at others. The mixing is pretty good, and the melodic content is rather enjoyable. It was a bit minimalistic throughout, though, although you still nailed dynamic contrast and melodic development. Structurally, it's a sound piece, and I thought the way you ended it was much more creative than the way you began it. It kept my attention throughout, but I think you should really pay attention to the lack of fill I see here in the future. This was a relaxing and atmospheric piece - trance that puts you in a trance, just the way I like it! Solid work, Sundans. Keep it up! ;D

8.5/10

[1000 Laughin' Corpses]

I love the ominous effects and mood at the beginning. I think they'd be more effective if they were more rhythmically varied, though. I think you could stand to cut down that intro a lot, too. I love the creepy piano at :40, however, and the climax into 1:30 was simply fantastic. It's very mechanical and quirky, which is why I like it! My main problem during the first half of the piece is that it's very repetitive. The long-awaited structural relief at 2:30 was welcome, but short-lived. It still progresses very slowly throughout. My main problem during the second half was that it seemed rather rhythmically busy from 2:48. It was a little jarring, to be honest, and I really think some more melodic development and well-integrated harmonic content could help this piece a lot. The mixing is not bad, but it really isn't enough to keep my attention for the full 4.5 minutes, I'm afraid. The ambiance was good, but you need to build more around that, Stapless. That acid riser that you have going for most of the piece was cool, but I think you should explore some different methods of channeling energy in this track, yes? Overall, it's pretty good, but it could really be a lot better than it is IMO. It can't be just all effects and bass, my friend. A 30-second intro with them is fine, but a 4-minute song is not. Sorry to be so tough on you - the effects and bass are COOL, but they shouldn't have been the only thing going on for over 4 minutes. I think this piece has a lot of potential, though, so you should keep working on it. Keep at it, man! ;)

6.5/10

Stapless responds:

Thanks for the review :0 I'll keep at it.

[Stories of the Battlefield]

I like the Celtic vibe I'm getting from the strings at the beginning. The melodic and harmonic content in this is rather enjoyable, but I think the mixing/balance could've been better. That echo-y synth really gets buried under the strings at times (I can barely hear it after the 1-minute mark or so). At 1:32, the texture gets a little too thick IMO. What I mean is there's a bit too much going on, and I think the chords might be culprit. I would choose between atmospheric and pizzicato-y/ melodic there. It would make for a neat little breakdown of sorts. The ending was simply not what I expected at all. It sounded like you were introducing an entire new theme at 2:57, and then it simply just ends. That's a little disorienting, my friend. The combination of instruments is rather enjoyable for most of the piece, however. The thick texture issue is an easy fix, and structurally it's sound as well. Smooth-flowing, well-established mood; I have few major complaints besides the mixing! Keep up the good work, Sovarozum! ;)

8/10

Sovarozum responds:

thanks for the feedback! much appreciated. and sorry about the ending ^_^' there will be a revised version in the coming weeks :D